Bookshop
Books selected, read and loved by our editors
Editor's Picks
All products are independently selected by our editors. If you purchase something, we may earn a commission.
On Connection
‘Kae Tempest presents a hopeful call to arms in their first work of nonfiction, championing the power of creativity in these increasingly disconnected times’
– Ariadne Fletcher
Vanessa Bell: Modern Living
‘From Omega to Charleston, this is a stylish survey of the V&A’s collection of Vanessa Bell paintings, textiles and interiors’
– Holly EJ Black
Devotion
‘Patti Smith offers an intimate account of her process and inspirations, taking us from Albert Camus’s house through to Simone Weil’s grave’
– Valerie Messersi
Souvenir
‘A luminous elegy for 1980s London, Souvenir is as finely tuned to the historical moment as Eliot’s The Waste Land, which Bracewell quotes alongside post-punk hymns to the Unreal City’ – Alice Inggs
1000 Chairs
‘Chairs, like flowers, have a secret language. This hand-book decodes their innumerable incarnations. From the classical to the contemporary, let a thousand perches bloom’
– Rose Eaglesfield
A Time in Rome
‘Part travel guide, part history: all eminently masterful. Elizabeth Bowen trips from the present into the past as she tours the Eternal City’ – David Lipton
Living Rooms
‘Living Rooms provokes a deeper appreciation for the sense of pride that Middle Easterners, myself included, harbour for their homes and the land from which they come’
– Donna Salek
The Sorrows of Young Werther
‘Framing unrequited love in the Sturm und Drang period, this book was so influential that Goethe's text was banned in Italy, Denmark and parts
of Germany’
– Thomas Reynolds
A Dictionary
of Colour Combinations‘A beautiful book arranging 348 colour combinations, an embodiment of Wada Sanzō’s foundational research from the 1930s’
– Ginny Davies
Broadwater: short stories grounded in Tottenham
‘This collection of short stories about Broadwater Farm is the perfect digestif after having read our story on the estate’s locally-famous mural’
– Alice Kemp-Habib
Liberty Equality Fashion
‘This illustrated novel about the women who styled the French Revolution entwines the female sex and global politics. A real page-turner’ – Maggie Gledhill
Mönster
‘Evelina Kroon lets us in her world with short stories and methods to make her signature check into anything from a table to a chessboard cake’
– Michaela Nilsson
Mount Nelson
‘Part of a collection spanning some of the most beautiful corners
of the world, captured by non-traditional travel photographers’
– Gianluca Longo
Weird Walk
‘This charming walking guide takes you on seasonal ramblings across Britain's ancient landscape’ – Mary Guy
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
‘Wicked-mania offers an opportunity to look
back on this beautifully illustrated classic’
– Elly Parsons
Square Haunting: Five Women, Freedom and London Between the Wars
‘A quintet of rebellious intellectuals, united by one Bloomsbury square’
– Damian Thompson
The Light Years
‘Howard was wildly undervalued in her time; no doubt because she was a woman writing about women but few capture human relationships so well’ – Emily Tobin
Written By Our Contributors
English Garden Eccentrics, by Todd Longstaffe-Gowan
The renowned landscape architect and historian reveals a series of obscure and eccentric English garden-makers
70s Style & Design, by Dominic Lutyens and Kirsty Hislop
This illustrated appraisal celebrates the 70s for what it really was – aesthetically eclectic and iconoclastic
Caledonian Road, by Andrew O'Hagan
A biting portrait of British class, politics, and money told through five interconnected families and their rising — and declining — fortunes
Queer Art: From Canvas to Club, by Gemma Rolls-Bentley
With nearly 200 artworks selected by leading LGBTQI+ curator Gemma Rolls-Bentley, this book mixes the high-brow with the low, gallery stalwarts with Instagram stars, and the racy with the fabulous
Diary of A Film, by Niven Govinden
A filmmaker meets a woman at an Italian espresso bar, spinning a gorgeous tale of love and the creative process
Crudo, by Olivia Laing
Laing’ s first novel incorporates autobiographical elements and details from the life of American author Kathy Acker
All the Good Things You Deserve, by Elaine Feeney
How do we love, trust and create in the aftermath of trauma? How do we name and speak that love?
East Winds: Recipes, History and Tales from the Hidden Caribbean
Riaz Phillips celebrates the lesser known side of Caribbean culture, rooted in tales and memories of the eastern reaches of the Caribbean
Book Reviews
Eric Broug traverses the wonders of Islamic architecture
Eric Broug’s Islamic Architecture: A World History explores the diversity in religious building design
Basket of currency: wicker is so back in fashion
Wicker is having a moment again. Just like the pliable organic fibres that form it, the craft always bounces back – despite periods of decline, its durable, lightweight and sculptural qualities keep drawing us back
Banksy or bust: has the street artist really saved art history?
In his new book, Kelly Grovier laments the extinction of art history, saved only by the renowned works of Banksy. But, as Stephen Patience queries, is Banksy simply filling the shoes of political satirists that have come before?
The concealed world of underwear
In her book The Virtues of Underwear, Nina Edwards exposes the intimate history of our most personal garments
Written by Designers
On Bathrooms, by David Hicks
With his 1970 book on bathroom design, the acerbic David Hicks put the interiors world in a lather, washing away notions of a clinical, functional cubicle
Billy Baldwin Remembers
A resplendent memoir by one of the deans of decoration, on his 40 years of creating beautiful things for fascinating people
On the Fringe: A Life in Decorating by Imogen Taylor
Imogen Taylor brings a sharp eye and ready wit not only to decorating style but also to the social history of the late 20th century
Every Room Should Sing, by Beata Heuman
The highly anticipated debut monograph from one of today’s leading designers championing playful interiors infused with Scandinavian flair
‘The One Day Box: A Life-changing Love of Home’, by Flora Soames
An intimate look at the ethos of one of today’s most exciting designers, and the people and places that have shaped her
Interiors, by Min Hogg and Wendy Harrop
A sumptuous, oversized treasury of ideas and inspiration. More than 300 photographs of the world’s most fabulous rooms
On Living – With Taste, by David Hicks
The second volume in David Hicks’ series of design volumes, with the iconic stripy dust jacket
Aesthete's Library
Design and decoration must-haves for your bookshelves
The Strange Life of Objects, by Maurice Rheims
£22 Shop at Abe Books
The House in Good Taste, by Elsie de Wolfe
£19.4 Shop at Abe Books
An Illustrated History of Interior Decoration, by Mario Praz
£58.65 Shop at Abe Books
Decorating is Fun!, by Dorothy Draper
£41 Shop at Abe Books
About Cooking
East Winds: Recipes, History and Tales from the Hidden Caribbean
Riaz Phillips celebrates the lesser known side of Caribbean culture, rooted in tales and memories of the eastern reaches of the Caribbean
Lee Miller: A Life with Food, Friends and Recipes
More than a book of recipes, Ami Bouhassane explores Lee Miller’s life through the influence of food and how she came to swap her camera for cooking
A Thousand Feasts: Small Moments of Joy … a Memoir of Sorts
A collection of stories and notes from a lifetime spent mostly in the kitchen as well as in the garden and on the move.
Cressida Bell’s Cake Design
A startlingly innovative and original take on the art and craft of cake decoration, presenting 50 cakes ranging from the elegant to the frivolous
Deeda Blair: Food, Flowers & Fantasy
Part memoir, part cookbook, Food, Flowers & Fantasy is a combination of recipes, evocative essays, memorable menus and, of course, the decorative Blair flair
About Houses
English Country House Style: Traditions, Secrets and Unwritten Rules
An interior design guide to creating the iconic English country house style from Milo and Katy Campbell
London Lost Interiors
Uncover the lost interiors of London in a book of 500 photographs documenting rooms that no longer exist
Nelle Case: Milan Interiors 1928-1978
Enrico Morteo documents the evolution of Milanese spaces, tracing the cultural and social evolution of the city. From rationalist rigors to the explosion of post-modernism
Karl Lagerfeld: A Life in Houses
The first publication dedicated to Karl Lagerfeld's glamorous homes, known for their eclectic interiors, ranging from the Art Deco to the ultramodern
The Irish Country House
From preserving a historic hunting lodge to re-creating a Gothic fantasy, each of the homes in this book reflect a contemporary approach to Irish country houses
New English Interiors
A deep-dive into the homes of 22 of England’s most exciting creatives, with interiors writer Elizabeth Metcalfe and photographer Dean Hearne
About Making
A Natural History of Shells, by Geerat J. Vermeij
£15 Shop at Waterstones
Paint Magic, by Jocasta Innes
£3.09 Shop at Abe Books
A Century of Rug Making in the Gulf of Saint Tropez
£59.95 Shop at La Manufacture Cogolin
Tales From Broken Plates
£30 Shop at Mark Lawson Bell
About Architecture & Design
Undesigning The Bath, by Leonard Koren
In this republished edition of Undesigning The Bath, Leonard Koren argues that design is antithetical to the essential bathing experience
Féau and Cie: The Art of Wood Paneling
Féau and Cie has supplied designers with period paneling since 1875; its archive of 25,000 pieces, many from the 18th century and Art Deco era, is an unrivalled source of inspiration70s Style & Design, by Dominic Lutyens and Kirsty Hislop
This illustrated appraisal celebrates the 70s for what it really was – aesthetically eclectic and iconoclastic
Les Pavillons
In the early 1960s, Zerbe and Connolly produced a charming guide to ‘sumptuously small’ maisons de plaisance once owned by a motly bunch of royals, courtiers and aristocrats
Spring Light: The Anglepoise Story, by Jonathan Glancey
An illuminating journey of the influence of a British icon, the Anglepoise lamp
Islamic Architecture: A World History, by Eric Broug
Broug explores the familiar and unfamiliar, famous masterpieces and unknown gems
Designed for Life: The World's Best Product Designers
A panel of 27 experts selects 100 designers from around the world for their fresh approach to design today
Jean Prouvé
A new and expanded slipcased edition of the 2007 monograph, with a particular focus on Prouvé’s furniture designs
The Religious Architecture of Alvar, Aino and Elissa Aalto
Aalto's ecclesiastical oeuvre is viewed as an evocative subgenre of the practice's portfolio, but its relationship to religion has, until now, eluded enquiry
About Art History
The Story of Drawing: An Alternative History of Art
Susan Owens offers a glimpse over artists’ shoulders as they work, think, and innovate through drawing
Denim: The Fabric That Built America 1935-1944
Graham Marsh and Tony Nourmand present a history of an iconic cloth and celebrate style's most enduring inspiration
Tulips and Peacocks
An introduction to William Morris’s personal collection of artworks from the Islamic world and how they came to influence his pattern-making
How Banksy Saved Art History
Kelly Grovier introduces a new take on the history of art, from da Vinci to Warhol, as reinterpreted by the international phenomenon Banksy
The Commonality of Humans Through Art
Stuart Handler explores how art has linked different cultures over the past 30,000 years, with chapters organised by theme rather than chronology
Colour Revolution
Charlotte Ribeyrol and Matthew Winterbottom introduce several essays on some of the most influential pioneers of photography
Surrealists in
New YorkDrawing on first-hand documents, interviews and archive materials, Charles Darwent reveals a fascinating new perspective on the history of the art in the twentieth century
When We See Us: A Century of Black Figuration in Painting
A major new study of Black figurative art from Africa and the African diaspora, covering 100 years from the early 20th century to now, edited by Koyo Kouoh
About Gardens
Lotusland
A thoughtful examination of the Polish opera singer, Madame Ganna Walska, and her penchant for the dramatic in garden design
Lost Gardens
of LondonTodd Longstaffe‑Gowan explores how gardened green spaces have contributed to the quality of life and well‑being of generations living in London
Pastoral Gardens, by Clare Foster
These gardens respond directly to the beauty of our natural habitats, with wildflower meadows and grazing cattle
Venetian Gardens
Monty Don and award-winning photographer Derry Moore take readers on a visual journey through the gardens of Venice and the Veneto
Landscape Design and Revolution, by Finola O'Kane
A history of landscape design across the eighteenth-century Atlantic world, exploring how new revolutionaries translated their principles into spatial form
The Bold and Brilliant Garden, by Sarah Raven
Sarah Raven shows how gardens can be transformed into places of enjoyment and adventure using dramatic plants, sculptural shrubs
The Gardens of Gertrude Jekyll, by Richard Bisgrove
This book shows Gertrude Jekyll's most influential garden designs and a wonderful collection of her planting plans
Landscape Gardening in Japan, by Josiah Conder
Josiah Conder combines his original study with an additional volume of photographs that beautifully capture famous gardens in Japan
Further Reading
